• by Joe Mandese , Yesterday

The Alliance for Audited Media (AAM), which was founded by the U.S. ad industry more than a century ago to audit how many people are actually see the media advertisers pay for, this morning unveiled a new initiative to certify how publishers utilize non-humans to reach humans.

“The industry is moving quickly to adopt AI, but trust remains a critical factor in how these technologies are implemented and used,” CEO Richard Murphy says of the AAM’s just-announced “Ethical AI Certification” program.

“By expanding access to our certification, we’re helping publishers demonstrate and communicate responsible AI use to their subscribers, advertisers and partners,” he adds.

The program coincides with the release of a new AAM ethical AI “Assurance Outlook,” which provides a framework for publishers focusing on key areas, including transparency, governance, bias and fairness and privacy.

The AAM noted that the certification program incorporates elements of the the IAB’s AI Transparency and Disclosure Framework to “strengthen industry alignment.”

The AAM's Ethical AI Certification program follows a similar professional certification program created last year by the Institute for Advertising Ethics covering the ethical use of AI for ad industry pros.

The AAM was originally founded as the Audit Bureau of Circulation in 1914 by the Association of National Advertisers and the American Association of Advertising Agencies to provide third-party audits of the circulation of print media, which has expanded to audits of digital versions and digital-only publications.